Racing: Courses must put customers first or close, warns Clarke

The in-fighting that has disfigured racing industry politics in recent months and which could roughly be described as Peter Savill and the British Horseracing Board taking on all-comers, rumbled on yesterday when Sir Stanley Clarke, the chairman of Northern Racing, which runs eight tracks, jabbed back at the BHB chairman's recent criticisms.

Savill has called on owners, trainers, jockeys and stable staff to consider taking action against 18 racecourses, including the Northern Racing tracks, who he says are short-changing those groups by not adhering to the board's incentive scheme for 2003. This amounts to contributing less to prize-money than the owner-biased board requires and spending the money on racecourse facilities.

"We can listen to these top people shouting their mouths off and trying to bully us," Clarke said. "But I believe the customer is supreme.

"Racing has to treat all its customers well, or I believe over the next few years we will see courses going out of business. Without successful courses we will have an industry going downhill. I have been running businesses since I was 21, and I'm now 69, and I know that you have to look after the customer.

Clarke has been the major developer of racecourses in recent years, breathing life into several failing tracks. He now runs Newcastle, Uttoxeter, Chepstow, Brighton, Sedgefield, Hereford, Yarmouth and Bath.

"We have spent £30m on buying racecourses over the last 12 years," he added. "Over the next five years we are committed to spending £15m to £20m on the tracks and, on top of that, increasing prize-money. You have to satisfy all customers, whether they are owners, trainers, or paying to go into the centre of the course at Uttoxeter. If that isn't a commitment to racing I don't know what is."

Still a formidable figure despite undergoing chemotherapy for cancer, Clarke added: "I have never taken a penny out of the racecourses. I've never taken any salary and never charged any expenses. I do not have my snout in the trough, taking money out of racing."

Another voicing views on the BHB's regime was Nigel Elwes, outgoing chairman of the Thoroughbred Breeders' Association. His call for a "supervisory board" to oversee the work of the BHB and Jockey Club and establish broad policy in racing met a cool response from Savill.

"Racing would not benefit from the introduction of a further layer of decision-making," Savill said. "The board, including Nigel Elwes, unanimously approved the BHB structure-review proposals which, if they had been implemented as planned, would be providing more effective governance of racing."

Clarke had been speaking at the offices of Singer & Friedlander, who sponsor next month's Grand National trial at Uttoxeter, and had a positive report on his Cheltenham Gold Cup contender Barton, who has recovered from injury.

It had been feared that the 10-year-old, trained by Tim Easterby, would miss the whole season after suffering a foot problem. "Peter Easterby [the trainer's father] rang me the other day – and he doesn't do that often," Clarke said. "The Easterbys have been cautious with Barton, but he's responded well to treatment and is in top form. They are talking about the Peter Marsh Chase [at Haydock on Saturday week]. I'd love to have a crack at Best Mate in the Gold Cup. Don't forget he beat him 14 lengths at Liverpool [in the 2001 Aintree Hurdle]."

* Best Mate was yesterday backed with Coral at 2-1 in a £10,000 double with Baracouda (3-1) in the Stayers' Hurdle.

* Today's turf meetings at Catterick and Newbury have fallen to the elements and tomorrow's cards at Wetherby and Wincanton have gone the same way. Friday's card at Wolverhampton has been switched to Southwell because of frozen lumps in the Fibresand surface at the Dunstall Park circuit.